To start off with, I'd like to ask if there was a single defining moment that has led to who/where you are now?
I suppose my birth would be the single defining moment, because without it I wouldn't be here. But other than that, there are childhood events, and one in particular, that acted as a definitive moulding and formative experience, although one doesn't feel inclined to open this wound in front of complete strangers. Suffice to say, it was an event, or series of events, which totally and utterly changed the direction my life was going at the age of 13 and 14. Without it I would currently be leading an incredibly different life, would probably be married, and my view of the world and its people would be vastly limited. I also would not have meet the myriad of interesting peoples that I have in these fields of interest. Defining moments can also be small and multitudinous occurring every day without our knowledge, until we look back in retrospection and see how the simplest event can have divine-like significance in the long term; that's magick!
How is it living in the Wellington area, what are the surrounds like, are you content living there?
The Wellington area is a rather pleasant, normal, place. It's design, or rather the design of its environs, allows easy access to the centre of the city, but without having to live there permanently, once or twice a month is good enough. There is, in the entire region, a good mix of nature and development, and behind where I live there is a vast bush where one can walk for days, and do all manner of magickal what-sits.
The past couple of issues of KEY OF ALOCER have moved away from much Black Metal context, what would be the main reason - lack of a healthy amount of sincere bands, or a desire for an overall picture of Satanic/Pagan music or something else? How is looking back over past issues?
It is a combination of both. It is so hard to find a Black Metal band who actually know what they are talking about, or have the slightest idea of how the world operates. And often those that appear to have the traces of intelligence are invariably regurgitating something they have been told or taught. I've found that having some Black Metal band babbling about their short-sighted view of the world tends to bring the tone down, and does not do the serious contributors to KOA justice. It is rather painful to sit intelligent comment next to someone who thinks that a mere music form is the be all and end all of existence. There is also the fact that I'm no big fan of the music. The initial inclusion of Black metal in KOA has left it with an image problem, where, for a magazine with the extensive contribution and valid comment, it seems vastly under-appreciated and patronized. Even issue #6 had people saying they liked it even though they were not really fans of metal; this being despite the fact that the metal comment was limited to a few pages of derisive reviews on the last pages.
When looking at the history of our countries, there is a number of similarities, time of settlement, settled by, gold rushes etc. and the isolation of Aust and NZ. Here national pride, ethnic pride is seen as a bit of a joke, something strange that happens overseas, is this also the case in New Zealand?
Yes. There seems to be a combination of, what could be called, colony-guilt, in that people seem to regard the fact that their forebears came from overseas, inevitably bringing benefits, as something to be ashamed of, and thus reject every tenet connected to that heritage. The other factor is the globalist propaganda which perpetuates the myth that we're all just "human beings", irrespective of our genetic and cultural heritage. Thus, here in New Zealand we have the ridiculous idea of white people calling themselves Polynesian, or White Polynesians, simply because they live here, when in fact Polynesian is a racial group. There also seems to be a general embarrassment about European culture, particularly due to Politically correct and globalist theories which promote the idea that, while tribal/primitive ethnicity is valuable and prized at any cost, anything from European history is part of the white, imperial, colonist, racist, oppression. This has gone to such an extreme that a new national museum being built in Wellington will be focused on "New Zealand's unique Pacific location and heritage" rejecting practically everything else that exists in the world; can you imagine a museum without an Egyptian exhibit?
Staying Down Under for the moment, here there is a belief that Euro-Aussies must feel guilty for being in this land, and for the acts of our ancestors with the Land Rights movement, the Mabo laws and the Racial Vilification act etc. just a constant guilt trip. What is the relation of Euros and Maoris, does the Govt. put a similar feeling of guilt on Euro kiwis?
I would say there are some fundamental differences between Euro-Maori and Euro-Aboriginal relations. I suspect that the Maori have been far more integrated into a multi-cultural system, both in urban drift and in inter-breeding (there are no full-blooded Maoris left), whereas some Australians may go for years not seeing an Abo in the flesh, right? (unless they go to see Yothu-Yindi). But for what is a very small minority, the Maori culture and language is beaten over the heads of the rest of New Zealand, with Maori-language signs for every govt department and facility, and the promotion of the historically inaccurate Maori name of New Zealand, Aotearoa (attributed by a white liberal).
Many times when BM bands are asked their opinion/thoughts on politics they seem to not even bother to take any notice. Would you agree this is an odd attitude to have, considering these people are controlling their country/lives/minds, or at least attempting to?
Yes, it is rather odd, but to some degree understandable. For one, most of these BM bands live in a Black & White world, where simple slogans and statements can get them by, however, politics necessitates more thought and consideration than just "I Hate ______"; although it is interesting to note that when they do take a political stance and call themselves Nazis and National Socialists, their perception of this political form is just a way to legitimately say "I Hate Kikes & Niggers" and to shock society with the Swaztika, which is not what NS is about anyway. The other contributing factor is that these youngsters are as much as anyone part of the much vaunted "Generation X", who appear to be largely politically illiterate. BM people seem to be symptomatic of the MTV generation, they have short attention spans, and are only interested in superficially interesting things - hence the obsession with the vapous trappings of magick and the occult - and so they find politics a little too dry for their tastes.
How is HELSONG coming together, what sort of distribution do you want when it's finished? Could we have a brief outline of the book?
HELSONG is a major book I am working on, my magnum opus, or at least my latest one. It is in some ways a continuation of a previous release, THE ROKKRBOK, but this time it concentrates fully on my personal patron, the Dark Goddess Hela. It is a very slow process as the literary side of the work will be as exhaustive as possible, with all manner of subjects covered, and so writing this material requires dedication. The scope of topics include the Neolithic origins of the Goddess of Death and Regeneration; the goddess-worship on the European homeland of Atlantis; Hela's place and impact in faery tales; the interpolation of Western and Northern mythical and religious concepts into Greek myth; the journey of the Dark Goddess through out the Mediterranean as the Phoenician Tanit; tree-lore; rune-lore; labyrinth-lore; stone-lore, and all manner of other applicable subjects. It will also include magickal techniques such as guided visualisation, and an entire shamanic curriculum. And it will also have a vast collection of helish pathworkings, visions, ehwe, and automatic writings, contribued by the various solo helish practitioners and Kults of Hel all over the world.
Apart from a wider selection of restaurants, what are the greater advantages of living in "culural melting pots"?
You've got me! I give up, so what are the benefits of living in cultural melting pots? Here's one, it's a great way to have your culture side-lined and minimalized; and another, it's a wonderful way to be melted down into the oblivion of a cultural milieu. The only purpose for melting pots is exactly that, melting! When everyone is just one oozing mass of global banality, without any trace of culture, race, religion, or creed, then we can all shop till we drop, buying things we don't need and replacing blood with plastic, soil with cement. Multi-culturalism is just one long-term attempt at marketing. Advertisers don't find markets, they create them, and in turning everyone into race-less drones, they are attempting to make a new race of the perfect consumer.
Do you think we need to use such ways to improve humanity; sterilization, genetic engineering. Can we not do so with selective mating/breeding eugenics?
Depending on the human race to better itself through its own breeding is tantamount to asking cats and dogs not to breed for their own sake, it just doesn't work. Humans are sexual beings and are just going to copulate at the drop of a hat, and only a select few people are actually going to think about the eugenic value of a partner, just look at sperm banks, anonymous little vials filled with all manner of regressive genes; not that I have anything against sperm banks.
What do you think are the greatest hurdles in the expansion/reawakening of Satanism/Paganism; laziness, the expectation of immediate results, hollywood flashiness, fear...? Is it different here than it is abroad?
I must admit to being very pessimistic (some might say realistic) about the expansion of Satanism or Paganism. Satanism specifically will always be on the periphery of society, and that is its role; thus any pubescent fantasy of an Armageddon followed by a Satanic Empire are out of the question. Both Paganism and Satanism are not viable as a global philosophy to replace the existing ones; Satanism because of the reason above, and Paganism because as a movement it does not possess any missionary zeal (which is, in itself, a good thing) and also because neither philosophies have a consistent, easily-explainable position. We have no definitive sacred texts, no Bibles (unless you count some out-dated ramblings from the sexual-revolution, published by Avon), no central church or synod to pass edicts and bulls, and no collective priest-hood.
For those that don't know, what is the force behind GOTHI-GYDJA A.A.I, its reason for being? Is a major release on the books?
The force behind GOTHI-GYDJA A.A.I is the Dark Goddess Hela, in fact, She is GOTHI-GYDJA A.A.I, I just happen to be someone who presses the keys and twiddles the knobs for Her. GGAAI is one continuous (for the subject never changes) celebration of Hela, it is the longest hymn to the Goddess, an eternal HELSONG. The sole reason for its existence is to glorify Her, and to provide those few that are of Her with music that is like a sacrament. Those that know Her, understand what happens when they listen to GOTHI-GYDJA A.A.I, because they can hear Her voice in the sounds, they have been there before. Those that do not know Her might be able to appreciate the music, though I make no guarantee, but they can never understand it without understanding Her.
How do you see the evolution of GGAAI's output, how do you see it moving in the future, will we hear vocals again in the future?
The evolution, or the change, has been rather rapid, especially when one considers that on the first release, Within Her, the only thing that was the work of GOTHI-GYDJA A.A.I was the addition of vocals to the borrowed (stolen) music. But now the music is solely produced by GGAAI, and the style of music is completely different, and, hopefully, far more powerful, right? GGAAI is very susceptible to change, I am continually being influenced by what I hear, both musically and metaphysically, and notch up a future idea practically everyday. And in that future there are so many possibilities, like the additional of musical titbits, you will never hear GGAAI using conventional musical structure as its basis, but I am thinking of using running piano themes, or the occasional DEATH IN JUNE-like guitar. I am very inspired by the Swizz band THE MOON LAY HIDDEN BENEATH A CLOUD so that's bound to impinge. GOTHI-GYDJA A.A.I has the freedom of the Underworld, so there is so many possibilities, I can see myself easily making albums into the next millenia, just give me a label to release them, and a few new instruments and I'll be as prolific as Havard Ellefsen (the difference being that my music is actually interesting, possesses a soul, and doesn't rip off Tolkien).
Looking from the outside, awareness seems to be thriving in NZ, what with the OSV there, and The Black Order formerly there, how is it from the inside? What of the Wicca direction, is it regionally pretty strong as is the case here?
Actually, The Black Order is now based in New Zealand again, under my leadership. It's period of European leadership, under two Grandmasters, resulted in nothing but depletion of funds, and confusion from members who were never informed as to its status. A new in-order magazine will soon be released, and the direction will be concreted and redefined.
Space Travel is too uncomfortable, so let's not bother, what of this unwillingness for a challenge, laziness that is an arm of Satanism?
I think we would all agree that the emitter of that comment does not amount to even a finger nail of Satanism, let alone an arm. Pete Gilmore the head of the Church Of Satan, maker of said comment, and all round silly bugger, made it clear that what he practises and preaches from his armchair is not Satanism, but merely a license to pleasure oneself and indulge in the fantasy of being a powerful and Satanic individual. That he sees hardship, pain and the eschewing of comfort as undesirable, shows that he is not at all interested in the iron laws of nature, or submitting himself to the survival of the fittest. He is far more willing to wait for the dawning of some facetious Satanic age, while selling his paltry magazine and satanic coffee cups. As I said, it is a different kettle of cash from what real, bullet-biting Satanism is about.
Shadowlight at the present has magazines, books, music, even artwork within its ranks, is there to be further expansion in the future?
One can but hope. Shadowlight Kommunikations will basically carry what ever life throws up at me, so as yet I can't, with any great certainty, say what we will have in the future, but it'll no doubt be more books and magazines, and more limited edition art things, and perhaps film or video. At this stage, it will only ever be material that Shadowlight produces herself, we aren't in the business of being just another distributor.
Is there any ultimate goal in your life?
Probably to die, that is an essential element of my philosophy. But in between then and now, my ultimate goal would be to create life. The point of all knowledge, all experience, all wisdom, is to pass it on to someone else, and so my goal is to pass it on to my future daughter.
Greatest thanks for doing this, anything special to end with?
Thank you Hugh for a truly interesting interview, I was disappointed to have to finish it. I just hope my lengthy answers have been equally stimulating. My best wishes to all those out there who have my respect, and a big "Helauja" to Andrasta if you're reading this.
I can't say I'm content living here, I've got my heart set on a beach-side village 20 minutes up the coast, but of anywhere in New Zealand, it is this area I'd rather be. Of course saying that, I'd rather not be in New Zealand at all, but until the day I save up enough to make the trip to the Motherland, this will suffice.
And as with your second point, my intention is to give a more complete picture of Satanism and Paganism, specifically since the metal input to this picture is so meagre. There are so many good bands out there that promote intelligent Pagan concepts and values, but are not beset by the fickleness of youth, or are susceptible to passing fancies; and they're not metal bands.
Looking back at past issues is a touch embarrassing. I amaze myself at how short and superficial the first articles were, and the banality of my interview questions. Generally, KOA #3 is my least favourite issue, while those from #4 onwards get steadily better, the best being a toss-up between #5 and #6. (What's your fave?)
However, any guilt trip does not, at least not directly, come from the govt. Having a Tory-National government means that, in general, they are not bleeding-hearts out for the ethnic vote, and although there are millions going in land-reparations every year, there is no over-emphasis on enforcing guilt. The guilt comes from academics and educators, with the pariah of "cultural-sensitivity" seeping into such fields as the training of nurses. Here the laying of guilt is part of the curriculum, with an inordinate amount of the course being spent on blaming Europeans for everything from poor-Maori health rates, to their high violent crime tendencies, substance abuse, and general non-achievement.
There is a great underlying fear of being branded a racist by speaking on any race issue, at least if you are European. Maori activists are able to get away with saying anything inflammatory, including threats to burn forests and blow up bridges (which, in criminal law, is Sedition). But although there is some general dissatisfaction amongst the non-Maori population about these activities, no one is going to say too much and be called a bigot and a racist. It would be unimaginable to have someone in New Zealand coming out with such a "racist" statement as the recently elected independent MP in Queensland did; even though she was merely stating the facts.
BM people are generally lacking in any awareness of who is controlling their lives, why else would they continue a pathetic crusade against an impotent church? And it is not just the politicians they are susceptible to, most of them are not aware of the global and monetary forces that control politics and finance, other than perhaps some vague belief that the Jews control everything; which is borne more from a victim mentality than any grasp of world politics.
Initially, we are looking at printing a limited art-edition, and then taking it to a major publisher of magickal works. It will not be a large publisher like Llewellyn or Weiser, but one of the more earthy ones, less glitz and glamour, more English! I have no doubts that a publisher will be interested, as it is a thoroughly unique work, whether they will wish to go as far as the art-edition is unlikely, as the art-edition will, hel-willing, have a silver-embossed cover, and come with a tape or CD of the meditative music of GOTHI-GYDJA A.A.I. The reader could listen to the music of Hela as they read Her book, and use it for undertaking the guided visualizations and pathworkings. Hmmmmmmm, that wasn't a very brief outline was it?
The world is vastly over-populated, largely due to the double-edged sword of technological innovation. Whereas only a mere hundred years ago, nature was able to regulate human growth, today's technology has allowed so many unneccessary people to live. Humans in their mad attempts to fill their lives with a sense of purpose, elevate the value of human life far beyond the purely animal form of existence that it is, and in doing so they attempt to hinder the Goddess in Her necessary actions. She tries to curb the insane population of grazing Africans, but the conscience of the West is pricked and they intervene, so what does She do? Instead of attacking African tribes people, She attacks the West, that is what AIDS is, the revenge of the Goddess for meddling in Her affairs. Now if only it was more lethal...
China had the right idea. Their one-child possibility is a necessity, and yet the West and its media would rather have China overflowing with people than admit that it must be done. And what is the purpose of allowing people with mental-handicaps and downs-syndrome to live, let alone breed. The act of procreation is a far too easy thing to perform, and it needs to be curbed. I would advocate mandatory sterilization for anyone that is, obviously, not capable of producing healthy children. We need a policy like ancient Sparta (and I don't just mean gays in the military), where the value of a human life was weighed on their ability to contribute to the society.
Genetic engineering is the evolutionary future of human-kind (and, if you believe some people, it is also the origins). We have to build a better mouse-trap, what is so wrong with ensuring that a prospective child will not have any genes that cause cancer, MS, downs-syndrome, or will have the right coloured eyes and hair. Of course, this is a double-edged sword, but if genetic engineering does break some law of nature, then She who is nature will see that everything returns to how it should be.
This is a far too vast subject for one question to consider all of its implications, or all of my opinions on all of its tenants. Nothing I have said should be taken as the total sum of my thoughts on this very complex subject.
The original Pagan religions arose out of a natural process. They were a reflection of the way people, as a volk, lived from day to day, and year to year. Thus, the needs of the volk were filled by the religion that evolved specifically for them. The needs and spiritual requirements of people today are vastly different. They have been subjected to several millenia of religions and economic philosophies which force-feed their adherents, which laid down clear and defined rules. Humanity now requires rulership, they need to be told what to do. And, therefore, the freedom, rule-less nature of Paganism, in practically any form cannot be a viable method of global-control (for want of a better word). If we want to rule the world, and I can't say I'm all that interested, we need to use a form that promises to take care of people, rule them, while still appealing to their ideas of "freedom" and "equality". I hesitate to advocate National Socialism as such an apt choice, but that is the most recognizable candidate, although it has a terrible image problem to over-come. (Snicker...that would have to be the understatement of the millenium! - Paul C.)
But to return to the essence of your question. What hinders Paganism, and indeed Satanism, as a magickal movement for the betterment of a sector of society, is the very world we live in. Once again it is the MTV generation which is at fault. Instant gratification, a constant flow of images, value attributed to the exterior rather than interior, and all the other bug-bears that humanity has devolved into. Magick, to use a collective title, is as susceptible to the whims and fancies of the imbibe-excrete consumer as any other market is today. Magick becomes a hobby, where people wear the jewellery, talk the talk, read the books, and walk the walk, but only get to the real stuff on the weekends, if at all, they are what I have always termed as Weekend Wiccans.
Magick is a slow process, it is as slow as evolution itself, for it is evolution, but people who dabble - those who wear the jewellery and assume the titles - have one attempt, fail, and give up. In the worst cases, you can encourage these people till you're blue in the aura, show them what they have achieved, and they'll still drift off. People have no commitment, they want instant results, and if they can't get them, they'll just go off and get wasted instead; it's so much easier than trying to do something unique.
The entire problem can be summed up in one word, "Lethargy". Look at how many people are involved in magickal circles, how many subscribe to the magazines and join the orders. Now look at how many of those people actually contribute to those magazines, or do something for that order. Invariably it is five working people to every hundred of dead-weight. For Hel's sake people, get off your arses and do something.
Saying that though, there are those special few people who make it all worth while, those who are actually willing to experiment, to try and to succeed, those that become the finders not seekers. Those people know who they are, because they have my respect, and that is a rare thing.
A major release is, naturally, the intention of GOTHI-GYDJA A.A.I, the main concern being a release to accompany Helsong, the book. There have been offers for deals, but as yet that particular one is still up in the aethyr. Ideally though, I would like to see a CD release, with a single track of 70 minutes as that is the preferable direction of the music, however, I am also interested in having an interim cassette release, as professionally released as possible because so far the releases have been home-copied and lack that concrete aspect of proper pressings. We shall have to see what She has in store for us.
And yes, vocals will be heard again. It is just a matter of finding unique ways to include them, and to do more mixing (I currently do not mix any of my material). The vocals will be of the oratory type seen on Within Her, but also chanting, perhaps some form of singing down the track, whispering, loops, and guest vocals. One of the ideals of GGAAI has always been to have a female vocalist, or rather a vocalist who happens to be female. I'm not after pretty, sexist, wimpish vocals that metal bands use, more like someone who's a combination of Nina Hagen, Björk, Diamanda Galas, Tori Amos, Freya Aswynn, Elizabeth Frazer of the COCTEAU TWINS, Leithana of ORDO EQUITUM SOLIS, the vocalist of MOON LAY HIDDEN, and maybe a touch of Kari Rueslåtten for good measure. But where to find such a woman?
One of the future releases of GGAAI will be a purely vocal work, but the vocals will be mainly sampled from sacred music, traditional songs to the Virgin Mary. I am always on the look-out for beautiful Christian hymns to Mary, so if anyone has any let me know. Beneath the thin veneer of the Virgin lies the Goddess.
But returning to your question. For a population the size of NZ, our output is quite phenomenal. The Ordo Sinistra Vivendi is now the only Satanic organisation of any worth in the world - we can disregard the US stuff because we all know that's a different kettle of cash - seeing as the ONA is defunct, and similarly TBO has a unique position with its wide-spread membership. So it is quite strange to step outside oneself and see what we have achieved. However, at the risk of giving away trade secrets, I must admit that the situation is the same as I mentioned in question #10. The creative and magickal core of the OSV and TBO is made up of a very select few, and it falls to them to do all the work.
In general, I would say that it is a miracle that we do have the core of people that we do, given the innate conservatism of New Zealanders. In the wide field of magick, we have the whole gambit, with the OTO, the IOT, various Qabalistic groups, various Egyptian-oriented groups, as well as covens spread through out the length of New Zealand. We even have the rather famous Golden Dawn author, Pat Zalewski, living in New Zealand; opinion is divided as to whether that is a good thing or not.
I would not really say Wicca is all that strong, it could, or deserves to be, stronger, but there is a lack of any central Wiccan point of reference. There are several small but distinct covens of the granny-taught-me tradition, and invariably these are not of the Yank-Wiccan persuasions, which is always a good thing.
It is my goal to see a more cohesive Pagan scene in New Zealand, so that more people can come out of the closet. Books on magick sell like hot-cakes, so someone out there is buying them.
Furthermore, that he was stupid enough to actually make the comment, and leave himself open for this criticism and abuse, makes one wonder about the intelligence of this man. Surely he would have been better to have been considered a fool, than to open his mouth and remove all doubt. The future of the corporation of the Church of $atan lies with a man that has his Reebok foot stuck well and truly in his mouth, how wonderfully ironic.
If you'll indulge me, I'll just mention that two new cassettes are available from Shadowlight. The latest ZENYENTEN tape, which has half an hour of new material, plus the debut release, and is called Lacheln!, and the tape of a new project called XAOS:343. Their tape is called "Disunified Field Theory" and is transcendental noise mixed with all manner of weird shit. Definitely the best Shadowlight release yet. Both tapes are available for $6us/$10aus each....neat covers too! KEY OF ALOCER #7 is also forthcoming, the nice editor of this magazine will tell you if it's out by now, right Hugh?
That is the essence of life, you're born, you live, you procreate (or not), you die, you leave your mark, and hope you get a good body the next time you come around (or if you're like me, hope your soul gets the gender of the body right next time).
Other than all that, my goal in life is Her greater glory, for I have treasures laid up for me in Hel, and in my mothers house there are many mansions.
To everyone, love your true ones, respect She whose body you walk upon, and in all things, honesty is the best policy. Be yourself, because you canna be anyone else.
Oh yeah, if you happen to be the vocalist I described in question #12, get in touch.
A.A.I
88 Rangituhi Cres
Porirua
New Zealand
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